Look down, the ground below is crumbling
Look up, the stars are all exploding
Africa chuckled a little at Midas’s question although it wasn’t a particularly humorous concept- she wondered light-heartedly if she should lie so he might think her braver. It felt good to laugh again, and she lifted her face gently to take advantage of the vast, open air as she stepped at last with a final clatter from the sandy rock canyon. “No.” She answered, casting a playful eye down onto him from above as her neck stretched to its full length. “We slept close by the tunnels above where those spears did not hover.” The one-winged mare sighed at length as though pushing the last of that stale old life from every inch of her body, grunting contentedly when she could exhale no more.

Ahead of them she could see through a rippling heat haze, the rich green blur which was the oasis; the Throat there in, and Africa’s legs began to tingle with excitement. “I found something the first time I visited the cave, you know.” Settling back into a comfortable more natural posture, she turned a little to find Midas’s eerie, pupil-less golden eyes. As unnerving as it was to gaze into such strangeness, she kept her poise and smiled warmly. “I would love to show you!” She had stashed the treasure last Tallsun maybe, in the little den in which she mostly slept when she was home- there with the egg that she did not know had hatched into the Zephyr upon her back.

“Do you have time for a quick detour? It isn’t far… If you would rather I will bring it back here.” Africa gestured off-east towards a little outcrop of striped, red and yellow sandstone. He was perhaps the most obliging soul, she had ever encountered and seemed always to have any amount of time for all of those who were friend or ‘family’- naturally she did not want to take advantage of his kindness and so waited with unwavering patience for him to agree (or decline).

Quickly, both because she was keen to learn about the gem-stone, and also because her General’s time was invaluable, Africa began to slip through the burning sand towards her little nest. It took no time to reach and she scrabbled between the wide set rock-opening into the heavy, dark shade within. “Actually,” She called suddenly, behind her- “Come on in!” The break away from the harsh Tallsun-sun was brilliant although the hot air still seemed to hang like lead weight across her back.
Silas had ducked carefully beneath the jut of rock and still clung tightly to his beloved’s back.

The space within was modest, easily accommodating two pegasi and their bird-like companions. Africa recalled as she began to nose through the old shrivelled flowers scattered around the perimeter, Ahi who she had nursed back to health here, and brought fresh flowers daily to cheer up. The fond memories caused her to smirk quietly as she began to dig out the small stone from the far corner. She noticed right away too, that broken shells were all that remained of her Basilisk egg. The mare assumed wistfully, that a snake or sheltering coyote must have feasted on it- it certainly did not occur to her that a Zephyr hatched from it.
“Here it is. I had an egg too, but there are only old broken pieces of it now…” She cooed through teeth which were clenched tightly around the Earth Amulet. It was a deep shade of mossy green- appropriate given the location where it had been found, deep below the cliffs above the Deep Forest. Africa turned to Midas and plopped the shining object onto the sand by his front hooves, just in case he needed to really inspect it.


OOC: I just presumed he would go with her :3 I can totally change it to suit!